Blog Posts
Desert mother. Pilgrim saint. These titles, given to Paula of Rome, epitomize the contrasts and paradoxes of her life.
Sometimes regarded as the first female monastic, St. Paula began her adult life primarily as a mother to six children. Raised in a wealthy Christian household in fourth-century Rome, Paula was married to a wealthy nobleman with whom she lived in peace and prosperity for sixteen years. It was her husband’s sudden death when she was only thirty-two that first brought the desert into her life.
Our next pilgrimage story comes to us from Natalie Kuchta. You may recognize the school she visited from a previous pilgrimage story! (You can find it here: https://www.axiawomen.org/blog/pilgrimage-story-christ-my-heart.) We hope you enjoy her reflections on connecting with the saints and carrying their prayers back from a pilgrimage.
It is not anything extraordinary we do to become a saint, but in the ordinary acts of our lives. - paraphrased from Fr. Michael Oleksa
On Monday, January 9th, viewers crowded into Cinema 21 in the Northwest district of Portland, Oregon, as lines to enter stretched out the door. A surprised staff checked tickets and guided us to Theater One, which was so crowded we began filling the balcony. Who knew, we could almost hear them thinking, that there are so many Orthodox people in Portland?
In 2021, my husband and I had the privilege of spending three months in a home named in honor of St. Maria of Paris - a house of mutual hospitality that welcomed migrants and refugees as well as volunteers, living together in community and service. Before this, I knew nothing of Mother Maria (or Mere Marie, as she is called in France), or the turbulent and inspiring story of her life. In preparation for our time in the home, we were encouraged to read her biography and writings to understand the legacy of radical hospitality and love that she left behind.
Just last year in November of 2022, I had the amazing blessing of going on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in Israel. The trip was brought to my attention by two of my good friends, and I knew immediately I had to take this opportunity to go.
The first time I visited the monastery was when I was in early high school in my home of Giza, Egypt. We were brought by our teacher, Mrs. Khairya - a scholar who led our preparation class in St. George Metropolitan Coptic Orthodox Church. She was our spiritual mother and made sure that we had a chance, as girls, to experience the beauty of Coptic monastic life. Traditionally, boys were allowed to visit monasteries and sleep overnight, participating in the early morning prayers and liturgies and taking part in some work at the monastery, while the girls would visit only for the day.